A man has been charged with attempted murder following an incident which led to the closure of a school attended by hundreds of St Albans children.

Around 300 of the 1,360 pupils at Parmiter’s School in Garston come from Park Street and St Albans. The school was closed to all but pupils sitting exams last Monday, June 13, after an a man was shot and another stabbed the previous day in an incident in a nearby road.

The closure was to allow police to carry out a forensic investigation of High Elms Lane - an access road to Parmiter’s - where a party had been held the day before leaving three men requiring hospital treatment.

Now two men have been charged in relation to the incident.

Sharriff Dacres, 21, of Cotterells, Hemel Hempstead, has been charged with attempted murder and Alexander Dacres, 26, of Tudor Avenue, Watford, has been charged with possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, two charges of possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply and possession of Class B drugs.

Both men have been remanded in custody and are due to appear at St Albans Crown Court on July 15.

Recently we, as a family (minus two of the kids), visited The Lodge RSPB reserve in Sandy, Bedfordshire. I had never been before, which is perhaps amiss of me as a birdwatcher as it is the headquarters of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds or RSPB and only 45 minutes drive from home.